Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Star of Davida Interviews Naomi Less

Although many people don’t
realize it, Jewish women are actually pretty cool performers. Cass Elliot (born
Ellen Cohen), Amy Winehouse, P!nk (her mother’s maiden name is Kugel), Paula
Abdul, Regina
Spektor…the list can go on and on. Within the religious sphere, there are
certainly rocking Jewish women who are shattering gender stereotypes with their
music while simultaneously connecting with God. One such woman is Naomi Less.

Less created Jewish Chicks Rock,
an umbrella organization for the activities and programs she has developed to
ensure that girls become “resilient, strong, and healthy individuals…[who can] shine
and rock.” She explains that breaking gender stereotypes is so important to her
because the Jewish community “needs to reflect all the voices in the community…
if there are only male voices, you’re not actually getting the perspective of
all Jewish people.” I could not agree with Less more. If we want to see the
Jewish community flourish, it is imperative that everyone’s thoughts are heard
and considered. Otherwise, the Jewish community is not truly inclusive, and
people will feel alienated from a religion and society that has the potential
to be a beautiful place for Jews of every persuasion.

Last summer, I attended Genesis
at BrandeisUniversity, an academic program for
Jewish high school students. I cannot even begin to fully express how awesome
Genesis, and its sister arts program BIMA, is; I mean it when I say that I
literally had the best time of my life there. Less also had an extremely positive
experience with Jewish summer camps. “Eight weeks wasn’t long enough for me,”
she explains with a laugh. As a result, she does programs and workshops with camps
to help kids develop their Jewish identities and relationship with their
Creator. “The kids actually get the opportunity to process and understand what
they’re experiencing so they can make meaning for themselves,” Less said. I
think it’s so beautiful that she is giving campers the opportunity to find
themselves and where they stand on the religious spectrum.

I was really interested by the
fact that Less leads worship services, considering she is a lay person and
performer, not a member of the clergy. “I want to facilitate an experience that
allows people to grapple with meaning, to investigate in an immersive way the
meaning of the prayers, and how it relates - or if it relates - to their lives,
in accessible way,” she explained. Over the past few years, I have really begun
to understand the importance of tefillah (prayer), and done my best to
delve into the text of the tefillot so as to best connect to my Creator.
However, all of this effort on my part would have been unnecessary if my
Orthodox day school had instilled a love of tefillah in me during my
nine years at the school. Before I really began to appreciate tefillah,
I know that I would have greatly benefited from one of Less’ prayer services
and workshops, as she makes the text accessible, understandable, and personal,
thereby empowering the individual in his or her Judaism. “Our tradition, the
Talmud, is about commentary, and that your voice is as important as an ancient
voice,” she said.

One of the many causes close to
Less’ heart is marriage equality and LGBT+ rights. “I’ve been a lover of Keshet
[an organization for LGBT+ Jews] for many years,” she said. Less underscored
the importance of including LGBT+ Jews as “equal participants…who are valued
for their personhood, not defined by their sexuality.” Less developed the
training initiative Addressing Evaded Issues in Jewish Education, which deals
with common problems among teenagers, from academic pressure to body image to
sexuality, that educators have difficulty handling properly. Less brought this
initiative to Keshet, where it was so successful that the organization made it
part of its training institute.

Less will actually be performing
a livestreamed concert through Jewish Rock Radio benefiting Keshet tomorrow,
February 6 at 8:30 PM. “When Jewish Rock Radio told me who the beneficiary
would be for the concert I’m doing, I was thrilled because this is an
organization that would’ve been on my shortlist. Keshet’s great at activating
people and giving them concrete actions to do,” she said.

I feel safe saying that as an
active Jew, dedicated performer, and social justice activist, Naomi Less is
truly a Jewish chick who rocks.

About Me

Prayer for Agunot

Creator of heaven and earth, may it be Your will to free the captive wives of Israel when love and sanctity have fled the home, but their husbands bind them in the tatters of their ketubot. Remove the bitter burden from these agunot and soften the hearts of their misguided captors. Liberate Your faithful daughters from their anguish. Enable them to establish new homes and raise up children in peace.

Grant wisdom to the judges of Israel; teach them to recognize oppression and rule against it. Infuse our rabbis with the courage to use their power for good alone.